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What's your Rohloff combo (chainring, cog)?

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Danneaux:
Hi All!

As someone new to Rohloff who is in the setup and choosing phases, I find myself wondering what chainring/cog combinations others have chosen and favor for their Rohloff-equipped bikes.  It'd be nice as a poll, but too confusing to set up and vote on...just too many combinations to be wieldy.

So, I'm hoping some of you might be kind enough to post your combo and perhaps a comment or two on...
1) How is the low working for you in your conditions/use.
2) Is the direct-drive Number 11 gear working out to be your most-used, or have you compormised on that to get the low/high you'd like?
3) How important has placement of the 7/8 split been to you?

With regards to this last, it seems best to consider "high range" (8-14) as the most-used cruising range, and the "low range" (1-7) as just that -- for slogging along at lower speeds, climbing hils, plowing through mud, going into headwinds, and so forth, with Gear 11 as the most-used direct-drive. 

If so, and with all considerations, it seems the best gearing for me might be the lowest combination permitted by Rohloff while maintaining full warranty coverage against possible breakage -- 40x17. My most-used level-cruisiing gears on my other bikes are either 58 gear-inches (early-season or if I've been off the bike a little while) or 62 gear-inches (pretty much anytime I'm riding flats) with a steady cadence of averaging around 110RPM to make up for the low gearing with fast, light revs. The 40x17 would put my Gear 11 right at 61.2 gear-inches, which is spot-on.

In reading the earlier version of Andy's "Living With a Rohloff" that appears on Sheldon's site ( http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/rohloff-impressions.html ), I see he mentioned a carefully chosen and well-reasoned 36x17 with all factors considered, resulting in a 15.4 low. While that low would be most welcome for what I so often do (ride with heavy touring loads up really steep hills and across sometimes very soft desert playa), I'm concerned about the possibility of breakage and warranty issues. It would also put me in 12th gear a lot, as 11th with that setup is a bit low for me. Given that, a 40x17 again seems like a pretty good match for my needs. My knees will never pull more than the 89.9 high it offers.

As for my overall range...
I have occasionally geared my bikes to offer low gearing in the mid-teens (15-16 gear-inches) and was delighted with the result, but do not want gears that low at the expense of reliability. At the high end -- particularly with a full touring load -- it is unlikely I'll ever use anything much above 85 gear-inches, given my high-cadence/low gear pedaling style.

Looking forward to all responses and any helpful suggestions you might be able to offer; thanks in advance! While I am familiar with derailleur bicycles, I am all-new to the Rohloff drivetrain, and learning as much as I can before my bike reaches final spec.

Best,

Dan.

wheezy:
38t x 16t, on a 700c/29er. Roughly 19-100 gear inches.

Plenty of range for an MTB and an almost brisk, flat-bar road bike. I'm rarely aware of the actual gear I'm in, unless it's top or bottom. I can tell whether it's 1-7 or 8-14 by the faint whirring and the feel through the pedals in the lower range, but that's about it. I'd say forget about the 7-8-7 shift. I personally don't notice it.

triaesthete:
Hi Dan
I would suggest as low as you can go but maybe on 38x16 for the even even sprocket combo Sheldon recommended to reduce wear. If you don't need 90"+ and want to stay within the law this is your only alternative.
My hub is quietening down very quickly due to extensive rough track hillclimbing. First is now very quiet as it has had a pounding. Two to seven whirr a bit but not annoyingly and are getting quieter. Like wheezy I don't notice the 7-8 change being any different to the others.
Most of the time now I don't know or care what gear I'm in I just use what I need when I need it,  and thats a simple choice higher or lower. No more juggling two shifters or toughing it out on the middle ring.
This sort of stuff will grow on you with familiarity
enjoy
Ian

JimK:
I have 38x16 (with 26 inch wheels).

 I don't notice 11 as anything special, but I definitely notice the 7-8 transition. 8 feels a lot more efficient than 7 - of course I am aware that this is probably an illusion caused by the noise in 7. Also the 7-8 or 8-7 transitions are a bit rougher/slower, but that is a very small issue. Shifting my hub is delightfully easy even then.

I use the full range of gears regularly. As I ride more I am getting stronger so I do notice I am not in 1 as much anymore, but getting up any real hill means a lot of time in 1. And we have lots of real hills in the Catskills!

On the Erie Canal ride we had a lot of flat terrain. I noticed that I was mostly in gear 9 riding about 11.5 mph or maybe gear 10 riding more like 12.5 mph. That kind of steady riding is not the norm around here where I live, where is it up and down, constantly shifting!

 

Andre Jute:
As Ian says, we familiars are superior for a reason...  :)

I too use 38x16 on 29er tyres, 60x622, because I live up a steep hill. (I didn't always have motor assistance.) It is the lowest legal ratio (2.375) and it gives me 19.5 gear inches, 5.6kph at 60rpm, to 102.6 gear inches, 29.5kph at 60rpm. In theory that's a bit short at the top end but I don't mind cruising downhill. Gear 11, 1:1, gives 69.9 gear inches, 20.1kph at 60rpm. EDIT: Unlike Jim, I liked gear 11, and most of my riding was built about it, but now, just like Jim, and despite two doses of heart surgery, I ride a bit stronger, perhaps from pure joy at being alive and out on my bike, and have been noticing that I'm all the way up into gear 14 (overdrive) even on the milder inclines quite often.

Back when I got the Rohloff, I would have gone to 36x16 if I needed it, and happily sacrificed the warranty for it. It turned out that my German dealer was not such a scofflaw; he wouldn't fit unauthorized parts or even supply them loose! But, though I've since bought the parts for some other ratios, when the opportunity arose to make a change, either way, I stuck to 38x16 because it just flat works for me.

Andre Jute

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